Propeller type fluid translating apparatus



Aug. 23, 1932. H. F. sci-MDT PROPELLER TYPE FLUID TRANSLATING APPARATUS Filed April 26, 1930 INVENTOR HF. 5chm'\dt'.

WITNESSES:

ATTORNEY :Fig. 1.

Patented Aug. 23, 1932 UNITED STATES HENRY F. SCHMIDT, or LANsDowNn, rEnns YLvAnrfA,assreuoafvtrownsrrrnonousn nrnc'rnic & MANUFACTURINGCOMBANY, a conroaa'r on"orflrnnnsynvanra PROPELLER TYPE FLUID TaAnsLA rInG APPARATUS j Application filed April 26,

'7 My invention relates to propeller type fluid translating apparatus such as, for example, blowers and pumps, andit has for an object to provide apparatus of thechar- 21 acter designated which shall be capable of operating reliably, eifectively and efliciently and which shall be so arranged as to provide an improved structure for supporting the rotating parts. 7

It has for still apparatus of the characterdesignated which shall embody a stationary guide vane structure disposed adjacent to the propeller for altering the direction of flow of the fluid 31 circulated by the propeller, which guide vane structure shall embodyan improved form of bearing structure for supporting the drive shaft of the apparatus near the propeller. v

It has for still another object to'provide apparatusof the foregoing character which shall havean improved form of supporting structure for the apparatus, which form'of supporting structure shall be especially apf;. o.25 plicableto blowers and pumps of large capacities I 1 I i It has for still another object to provide a propellertype blower or pump wherein the stator structure, associated with the propel- .ler is supported separately from the stator structure of the prime mover drivingthe propeller and wherein adequate means for supporting one end portion of the shaftconnecting the rotating parts shall beembodied in the prime mover and adequate and, improved means for supporting the other end of the shaft shall be embodied in the pump or blower structure.

These and other objects are efiected by my invention as will be apparent from thefollowing description and claims taken in connection with the accompanying drawing, forming a part of this application, in which: Fig. 1 is a view, partly in elevation and partly in section, of one form of apparatus arranged in accordance with-my invention; and, a Fig. 2 is a View, in elevation, of the pro-' peller and guide vane structure shown in another object to provide efiiciency than any; other], form The 1930,- seria iro. 447,613. a

Figalp'ltshow or body 10 having a converging inlet portion 11,.an -inter. mediate, throat portion 12 andj a'rdiverging outlet portion 13'. Disposed within the-casing 1O isa screw propeller 14 having-a hub portion 15 andr'a plurality of propeller blades 16. ,Preferably, as disclosed, and" claimed in my United States Patent No; 1,596, 59, issued August '17, 1926, for Propellerpuinp and vassignedito the Westinghouse Electric and Manufacturing Company, the propeller has a projected area which is approximately% -,of thedisc; area. ,In addition,, the blades preferably have anijncreasing axial pitch from their leading to their trailing edges and theseand additional proportions, as disclosed and claimed in my aforesaidrpatent; haveben foundto operate,1in aparatus of the character illustrated, with a substantially higher of propeller of which-I am aware.-

shaft 17, by any suitable fprime mo'verapparatus suchas, for example, an electric mo-l tor 18, the propeller being secured upona tapered portion 17 of the drive shaft bya nut-14". :Providedin the drive shaft'17, betweenthe-motor and the propeller,is a coupling 19"for disconnecting the motor from La constantradial pitch. Propellersijhaving l The propeller- 1 1 is ,drivena througha drive the pumpor blower apparatus. In the presvent embodiment, the driving motor-18 is disposed below the casing 10 and is supported upon a foundation structure, indicated at 20, .whilethecasing 10'is provided with its own supporting feet 21carried-upon a separate foundation structure," indicated atj 22. Such an arrangement is especially; applicable to blower and pump installations of large ,ca-

pacity whereinzthe. drivingimotor maybe located at a substantial distance from ,thepropeller. a a a drive shaft 17. issupported,axially in thelower end of the motorhousing bya suitable thrust; bear-ing23, the drive shaft being provided with a thrust collar 24for engaging the thrust bearing. Forl maintaining the shaft in radialalignment, a suitable steady bearing 25 ,isalso provided in the lower portion of the motor. The steady bearingand the thrust bearing 23 therefore cooperate to maintain the lower end of the shaft in its proper relation both axially and radially An additional steady bearing 26 is preferably provided in the upper end portion of the motor. f

The foregoing arrangement provides adequate structure for supporting the lower end of the drive shaft inproper positionboth axially and radially. ",However, in view'of' the length of the drive shaft 17 the upper end of the latter mustbe, supportedso as to maintain it in proper radial alignment and, to this end, I provide theupper extliemity qf the shaft 17 with a journalportion 27 supported in a bearing 28. 'The'bearing 28 is located within a 'coreor annulus member 29 ,which isjcarried from orsecure-tothe blower casing lO by a plurality of circumferentiallyspaced, :inwardly converging, stationary guide vanes'3l: The later, as shown particu- {larly -in' iFig-.'2, are generally curved in the direction offluid flow and they function, whendisposed onthedischarge side of the -propell'er to remove -the'twist or swirl from the fluid circulated bythe propeller. F or a .ld'etail description of the formofthese guide wanes, reference may be had to-my-c'opending I application, SerialNo; 277,650, for Propeller :type:blower and assigned to the Westingihouse Electric and ManufacturingCompany.

As stated heretofore, the core member 29 is supported fromithecasingilObythe guide vanes 31 'an d the core member is-counterbored 'atfl32 and has attached thereto an annular ring33,,the shoulder of the counterbore and the ringforming a seat-for a bearing retainer 34. The latter-is divided into upper and lower sections 35 and 36, the upper section 35in- -terfitting with :the lower section and being .removabletherefrom so asto permit removal :offithebearing The upper and lowersections 35 land -36 of the bearing retainerare detachably secured to the ring-33Tby'studsor :taplbolts 30. The bearing retainer 34 is so bored-as to conformwith the spherical shape supporting feet'21l Lubricant is supplied to,

' radially through the casing.

oflthe bearing 28 in order thatflthe lattermay be freeto angularly adjust itself tothe axial disposition of the shaft Preferably," the guide vanes 31iare secured, .at least in part, to the-sameportion of the casing 10 as-the the'bearing 28Yby a conduit -87 extending The-lower end of the core member 29ispro-' videdwitha plate'38 bored out at 39 to accommodate the drive shaft 17. The plate 38 forms a lubricant receptacle 40 in the lower portion ofthe core member'and, lubricant is ,drained therefrom through. a suitable, radially extending outlet tl. :For preventing leakage oflubricant: downwardly alongthe shaft towardthe propeller,the drive shaftis 1 mvided, adj acenttothe-bearing 28 with an oil deflector 42, while the plate58 isi provided beneath the oil deflector with an upstanding sleeve 43 for preventing lubricant passing provide an even, nearly continuous surface forthefiuid passing through the casing. In

"additiomthe entrant side of'thepropeller is provided with a conical fairing member 44:,

ler hub and the core member, cooperating to insure'thatthe fiuid passes throughithe an nular passage of'the'casing with a minimum of reslstance to flow. The fairing cone 45 .18

preferably secured, as by screws 46, tothe the shaftl7 is rotated andthe propeller 15 is actuatedto circulate fluid through thecasing in a direction from the inlet 11 toward the outlet 13. The guide vane structure 31 serves to remove'the twist o'rswirl from the fluid as itis discharged from the propeller whilethe divergent-portion 18 0f the casing serves to' convert aconsider'able 'portionof the velocity energy imparted to the fiuidby the propeller into energy in the form of static pressure; Inasmuch as apparatus ofthis character may operate at relatively high r0- tating speeds, it is necessary that the rotating parts"v be adequately supported and, hence, the lower end of the shaft is supp'ortedboth axially and radially by the bearings-23,25,

while thecore member is provided, on its i discharge side, witha lish'tail or'fairing cone A5, both fairing concs,.as well as the propeland, 26, while the upper end of the shaft'is supported by the be'aring 28.

10 by the guide vane structure 31. means of such an arrangement, the guide vane struc- *ture 31 performs not only the function of removing the twist or swirl from the'fiuid circulated bythe propeller, but it also serves the additional function of supporting the bearing 28 from the casing. In order to render the guide vane structure as effective'as possible, it'is advisableto locate the latter adjacent to the propeller and, in order that the shaft 17 may be so supported as to reduce deflection and avoid vibration as vmuch as possible,it is also advisable thatthe bearing jectives are accomplished and an idealarrangement is consequently afforded In the-embodiment illustrated, thestationary portion of the blower or pump structure The bearing 28 is carried {from the casing" is supported independently of the driving motor and the supporting feet 21 of the, casing 10 are preferably located adjacent to the guide vane structure Siso that, the forces im: posed upon the bearing 28 are transmitted directly to the foundation 22 and, hence, distortion of the blower casing is avoided. At the same time, the blower structure may be made relatively lighter in weight, a very de-' sirable feature with apparatus of the character illustrated. While, in the preferred embodiment illustrated, I show an arrangement wherein the guide vane structure and the bearing are located on the discharge side of the propeller, it is to be understood that my invention is not confined to locating the guide vane structure and the bearing on that speciflc side but that my invention contemplates, in its broader aspects, locating the guide vane structure and the supporting bearing adjacent to one side of the propeller.

While I have shown my invention in but one form, it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that it is not so limited, but is susceptible of various changes and modifications, without departing from the spirit thereof, and I desire, therefore, that only such limitations shall be placed thereupon as are imposed by the prior art or as are specifical- 1y set forth in the appended claims.

What I claim is: v

1. In a fluid translating device, the combination of a casing having an inlet and an outlet, a propeller disposed in the casing between the inlet and the outlet for translating fluid therebetween, a prime mover, a drive shaft for connecting the prime mover to the propeller, said drive shaft having a portion projecting beyond the propeller, an annulus memberdisposed in spaced relation about the projecting portion of the drive shaft, said amiulus member having an open end remote from the propeller, a bearing for said projecting portion of the drive shaft, means for supporting said hearing within the annulus member and providing for removal thereof through the open end of the annulus member, and a fairing cone detachably secured to the annulus member and forming a closure for the open end thereof.

2. In a fluid translating device, the combination of a casing having an inlet and an outlet, a propeller disposed in the casing between the inlet and the outlet for translating fluid therebetween, a prime mover, a drive shaft for connecting the prime mover to the propeller, said drive shaft having a portion projecting beyond the propeller, an annulus member disposed in spaced relation about the projecting portion of the drive shaft, said annulus member having an open end remote from the propeller, stationary guide vanes extending between the annulus member and the casing for supporting the former from the latter and for altering the axial direction of the fluid circulated by the propeller, a bearing for said projecting portion of the.

drive shaft, and means for supporting said bearing within the annulus member and providing for'removal thereof through the open 

